Should you keep your head empty? Or even, should you get things done.

02-03-2012, 07:18 AM

"Maybe what you're doing is important, interesting, or useful; or maybe it isn't but it has to be done anyway. In the first case you want to get as much return as you can on your investment of time and energy. In the second, you want to get on to other things as fast as you can, without any nagging loose ends.". -----David

There might be things you want to keep in your head, or sometimes you can't help thinking it, like the vacation you are going to spend, romance you are going to develop. Just getting excited by just thinking about them.

And as you are doing these things, you don't just want get them down, nor you are doing them for a result. I mean, Come on, if you are ever doing things for a maximum possible return, then when are you going to enjoy it?

If you are eating a wonderful dinner, listening to music, or talking to your wife and you are in your head fantasizing
about your upcoming vacation, then you are really not enjoying the dinner or music and you are not giving your wife the attention that she deserves. Mind like water (having an empty head so you can be present to what is happening and respond appropriately) comes from eastern beliefs. Getting there is not free/easy although emptying your head i.e. writing incompletions down does facilitate this (MUCH more is required to really accomplish this).

This topic is really outside GTD, though GTD can be helpful toward this.

Comment

GTD is a productivity methodology, i.e., with the emphasis on producing stuff. Being contemplative is a different mindset, and it has its value, too; but GTD is action-oriented.

Somewhere DA said that you should avoid having one thought more than once unless you want to. I can relate to what you say, the thinking process in itself has its value too. But from a point of view of efficiency, you want to use that 'computer time' for a different item each time.

I'm not sure, but maybe the thing is that the first GTD book was mostly business-oriented (no loitering in there), and then, only when it became so popular it spread to life in general. At least, in my country (Spain) it was published in a collection of business-oriented books...

Comment

"Somewhere DA said that you should avoid having one thought more than once unless you want to."
so, If I want to, it's still ok to think them. (during the period that I decide to do nothing).

"If you are eating a wonderful dinner, listening to music, or talking to your wife and you are in your head fantasizing
about your upcoming vacation, then you are really not enjoying the dinner or music and you are not giving your wife the attention that she deserves."
I don't think am going to think about other fancy things while I am doing one.
And DA defined what "stuff" is, that for things does not belong to where it is, an open loop. Things like listening beautiful piece of music, enjoying a delicious meal won't be count as "stuff", perhaps?